As a pioneer in smart energy drinks, I am often approached by New Age thinkers about "alternative" approaches to drinks and energy.
While I typically find these conversations intriguing, I am sometimes just amused at how gullible people can be when something is touted as "organic" or "natural.
" As Fred Smith used to say, "if you keep an open mind, people will predictably throw garbage into it.
" One of my favorites involves people who tell me about how Yerba Mate gives you energy but avoids the side-effects of caffeine.
The reason they give for this great effect of Yerba Mate is because it contains an ingredient called "Mateine" that is superior to caffeine.
Interestingly, I have heard the same thing said about tea - "it has theine, not caffeine," and guarana, "it has guaranine, not caffeine.
" Unfortunately for those who don't know yet, "mateine," "guararine," and "theine" are all caffeine.
The only difference between them is marketing/nomenclature.
In the case of "mateine," it seems to have been intentionally myth-represented in documents that refer to research that doesn't exist and experts who deny what is quoted to them.
In a case of true irony, the well-intentioned people who are eager to have a stimulant that is "better" than caffeine have become victim to and evangelically spread a marketing lie.
Ouch.
In the world of energy drinks, guarana and yerba mate have a special marketing place.
Since caffeine is only a small part of the plant, caffeine content varies dramatically, and these plants have distinctive flavors, most drinks use only a small amount of these ingredients and only get a small percentage (often 5-10%) of their caffeine from these "natural" sources of caffeine.
These drinks then add "pure" caffeine anhydrous (taken from coffee) to boost the caffeine levels to predictable high levels.
Hence, when an energy drink claims that it uses guarana or yerba mate for energy, 99 times out of 100 that is marketing speak, not an accurate description.
That said, Yerba Mate, like guarana, contains other compounds including theophylline and theobromine, which are metabolites of caffeine (the body creates them in the process of metabolizing caffeine).
These compounds have been reputed to enhance the experience of caffeine, although research to this effect remains elusive.
My personal experience is that while I experience the effects of standardized guarana or yerba mate extracts to be slightly more pleasant than straight caffeine anhydrous, I still get jittery and tense (jaw tightening, head "thickening," muscles tight), and still crash when it wears off.
It doesn't hurt, but it doesn't help that much.
The positive benefits of getting caffeine from these sources simply do not compare with a well designed smart energy drink.
Of course, the proof is in the pudding, as they say.
Think Two Steps Ahead and see for yourself.